Okanagan College students have the skills

BC Skills Canada winners Dominique Zimmermann, left, who won a gold medal and Derek Volling who took a bronze medal. Both students are from Vernon.

Image Credit: Contributed/Okanagan College

April 22, 2014 - 4:09 PM

VERNON - If the future of our region is dependent on a skilled workforce, the Okanagan is in good shape.

Nearly a dozen Okanagan College trades and technology students have returned home after podium finishes at the BC Skills Canada competition, held earlier this month in Abbotsford.

The College earned in a series of timed high-pressure skills competitions ranging from Automotive Collision Repair to IT Network Systems Administration.

“I’m extremely proud of the results of our students,” Okanagan College president Jim Hamilton said. “The Skills BC competition is a great measure of how our students perform in the real world.”

Winners of the provincial competition are eligible to compete at the nationals, held in June in Toronto.

The Okanagan College students who will represent the province in Toronto are:

- Vernon’s Dominique Zimmermann, gold in Aircraft Maintenance

- Kelowna’s Ken Anderson, gold in Automotive Service

- Kelowna’s James Webber, gold in Electronics

For the second year in a row Okanagan College swept the Electronic Engineering competition, taking all three podium spots. It’s the third year the College has competed in this category; each year students from the program have returned with medals. The College earned gold, silver and bronze in 2013 and took home a silver and bronze in 2012.

“I am really excited to support Dominique at the national competition,” instructor and coach Dale Martell said. “After winning the provincial competition I’m feeling very confident about how he’ll do in Toronto.”

OPINION Editor, This is a busy time of year, but I find it’s also a time of reflection, particularly as January marks the end of my two-year term as Chair and my 10 years serving on the Board of Interior